External Observation
by Connor846
Summary: A small series about Jeffersonian/FBI members encounters with Booth and Brennan.
1. Hodgins

**Disclaimer: **I do not own The Fox show Bones, nor did I create these two characters or the places described here. No copyright infringement intended and no monetary profit. This is purely for testing my own creativity.

Connor

* * *

**Jeffersonian Institute  
****The Office of Dr. Temperance Brennan.  
****Washington D.C.**

Dr. Jack Hodgins was particularly excited about the results of his latest case. He had identified the hair found under the strangling victims fingernails. He couldn't find Cam or Angela anywhere, so he went straight to Dr. Brennan's office.

He rushed in the door excitedly saying: "Hey Dr. B! We've got the break that we need! I found-" And was stopped short by the scene that was presented in front of him.

Temperance Brennan sat on one end of her sofa, reading casually from a file in her right hand. Stretched out across the sofa was her partner, Special Agent Seeley Booth. The unusual sight that brought him up short was that his head was in her lap … and her left hand was gently stroking the hair on his head. A gentle soft snore emanated from the area where his face lay towards her stomach.

With her right hand she casually put the file folder down on the small table next to the armrest and brought her index finger to her lips in a _shhhh_ motion. Then she motioned Jack forward and whispered:

"What have you got for me?"

Jack, still taken aback by the sight of the tough FBI agent snoozing like a kitten underneath her palm, hesitantly crept forward towards the pair and knelt down near the arm of the couch. He began to get a weird feeling … that he should turn around and leave them be. It felt like a private moment that he was intruding on.

He handed her the file and pointed to the test results indicated at the bottom. Brennan perused the file and looked at Jack with one eyebrow raised in the universal 'what am I looking at' gesture. Jack swallowed the lump that was forming in his throat and started to speak in a whisper.

"The root of the hair we found under the vic's fingernails is a _Caracal_, or better known as an African Lynx. It was cemented there when the victim's hands flew to his throat as he was being garroted. The small blood specs also belong to the cat. He was probably petting the cat when the piano wire wrapped around his neck and he clutched the cat's hair out of reflex. "

Her eyes widened a fraction. Unnoticed to her, the hand that had been slowly and steadily running itself through Booth's hair stilled.

"Johnson owns an exotic cat, a Lynx he said. He claimed no association with any of the victims. The cat had abrasion marks on it. That son of a bitch." she said, her voice rising in volume and vehemence slightly with each word she spoke.

Quite unexpectedly, on her lap Booth started shifting around and a tired voice drifted up from him.

"Hey Bones … five more minutes" he said.

"Ok Seeley. Go back to sleep. I'm here." she said as she dropped the file on the armrest and her left hand slowly started stroking his hair again.

"Mmmm 'K Bones. Love you." He replied.

With a small smile on her face she whispered words that Jack was barely able to hear even though he was less than 3ft away.

"Love you too, Booth"

Within a minute, soft snores echoed up again from where his face lay in her lap. She turned her bright blue gaze back to Jack and the silence seemed to grow oppressive. Jack turned his mind back to an earlier thought. He was definitely intruding upon a private moment. Or rather … an intimate moment.

Jack grabbed the file back and made as if to go when Brennan's right hand placed itself upon his forearm. She looked up at him with a silent question in her gaze and then whispered:

"You know this case involves children, and you know Booth's hatred of child killers. He's been driving himself to the breaking point trying to find anything that would give us the killer. He hasn't been sleeping well at night. Neither have I. We … find it easier to do so, easier to let go, when we're together."

Jack slid his gaze from her and over to the agent on her lap. He recalled that Booth had large circles under his eyes when he came to the Jeffersonian this afternoon with the stormy troubled look on his face. Now … now he looked calmer and, if not at peace, like he was relaxed enough to rest a little.

Jack turned his gaze back to Brennan and said:

"Temperance" invoking the use of her full name, which he never did "You don't need to make excuses. Be happy, both of you, that's all I ask."

A near instantaneous flash of relief crossed her face along with a smile that seemed to light up the area and chase away the shadows in the room.

_Damn_ Jack thought _How the hell does Booth get any work done when she smiles like that? Or maybe he doesn't … I know I wouldn't if that was directed at me._

"We are Jack … We are." she replied.

Reaching down to pat the hand that rested on his forearm he finished standing and started making his way back towards the doorway to her office. When he reached the threshold he paused and turned to look back at the couple on the couch.

Brennan's hand had resumed its slow travel across the frazzled hair of Booth's, smoothing down the disarray as it calmed and relaxed the man himself.

The thought crossed his mind that he should tell Angela, or hint something to Cam, maybe even torture Sweets with it … but he decided against it. For in the end they were all external observers looking in towards the center of their group … and the subjects deserved some time to themselves, to enjoy each other.

With a small grin he made his way back to his workstation with one small additional thought.

_Angela's gonna flip when she finds out._


	2. Cullen

**Disclaimer: **I do not own The Fox show Bones, nor did I create these two characters or the places described here. No copyright infringement intended and no monetary profit. This is purely for testing my own creativity.

Connor

**Authors Note:** Constructive reviews are appreciated and negative criticism will be ignored.

* * *

"**Mothers" Biker bar  
****Just outside of Washington D.C.  
****Near Arlington, VA. **

Deputy Director Sam Cullen sat in the Sheriff Deputies car and stared in awe of the sheer destruction he saw around him and what was playing out on the screen.

What he was looking at was security camera footage of Booth and Brennan apprehending their latest suspect. The owner of the bar, since it was usually filled with bikers, recorded every angle that he could in order to cover insurance claims for damage that usually happened once every week or so.

The camera had picked up Booth and Brennan approaching the suspect outside of "Mothers" bar. It began with Booth showing his badge to the assembled bikers, six altogether, and telling the lead biker, Jimmy "Hoss" Longhorn, that they would like him to come with them for questioning.

_Man's got balls_ thought Cullen _I wouldn't have gone up to them without at least two agents for backup and a s.w.a.t. team around the corner. _

On the video he saw Longhorn cross his arms and shake his head. It appeared that Dr. Brennan said something at this point. This appeared to elicit a negative reaction from the group and they started to form a semi-circle around the pair.

Booth once again held his hand up in the air and pulled his suit jacket back to reveal a gun. He also appeared to look around at the group and realize that they were outnumbered three to one.

At this point, all of the bikers pulled some sort of knife or club out from underneath their jackets.

Booth appeared to be raising his voice, pulling out his gun, and reminding them that he was a Federal Agent. This didn't appear to worry the gang as one of them, quick as a whip, moved in and smacked Booth's pistol out of his hand.

This was the start of the Donnybrook, as his old Irish ancestors called it.

Booth and Brennan cut loose. Arms bent and cracked, weapons flew out of assailant hands, and the security camera was hit by an errant object. It moved just a little to be able to capture Dr. Brennan taking a hit from the last guy standing. Down she went and that caught the attention of an enraged Seeley Booth.

The biker in question stood just at the edge of the recording screen standing over Brennan's prone body when an arm reached out from nowhere and the biker just … disappeared off to the screen in the direction of the door to the bar.

Cullen looked up from the passenger seat of the patrol car to the scene. Moving around in the bustle were Federal Agents, Paramedics, and Sheriff Deputies. All they were really involved in was cleanup duty though. Dr. Brennan was a Black Belt in three different martial arts styles and was quite the deadly woman in her own right. She appeared to have handled herself quite well in the fight up until that last moment.

Booth, Cullen knew after reading his sealed military file, was a former Army Ranger and tended to downplay his hand-to-hand combat abilities. What he didn't let everyone know was that he was trained by Israeli Army instructors in Krav Maga, a former champion boxer, and proficient in several other martial arts. The man was a walking arsenal even without a gun in his hands as the bikers found out, much to their dismay.

Cullen rose and started walking towards the ambulance that contained the two partners. Off to one side, sitting on the loading step, was Dr. Brennan with Agent Booth hovering over her. While neither looked worse for the wear they did indeed look exhausted and it appeared that Brennan had a cut on her cheek from receiving that hit during the fight.

Booth was gently pressing a cloth containing an icepack to her cheek while blithely ignoring the activity around him, his dark eyes focused intently on her. On the receiving end of the gaze her cerulean eyes stared back at his with the same intensity.

Something happened to Cullen that had never happened in all the years of directing Agents and investigating crime scenes.

His sure footed steps faltered and his determined pace slowed coming to a stop.

Dr. Brennan had slowly reachedup and covered the hand that was holding the cloth to her face. Neither one broke the gaze they held during that whole entire time.

Cullen got a feeling that he had never experienced before concerning people who worked for him. He was intruding on a private moment between the pair … almost an intimate moment.

He really was quite unsure what to make of this. The pair sat there, completely focused on one another and ignoring the outside world. Making a decision he did an about face on his heel and went over to talk to the Agent managing the scene.

He knew about the rumors that flew around the Jeffersonian and the FBI concerning the two, and it appeared that there may in fact be some substance to them. What most people didn't probably realize though was that they, the people they worked with and for, were all external observers watching in on a play that only Booth and Brennan knew the script to. And it didn't appear that they were going to let anyone come in-between them till they were ready to act out the conclusion.

_What did Shakespeare say?_ He thought to himself with a chuckle _all the world's a stage and the people merely players._

Taking one final look around at the devastated scene he started to think about the amount of paperwork that … wait … _was that guy _embedded_ in the door?_

_Christ … note to self … do _not_ ever piss Booth off with anything concerning his "Bones"_


	3. Angela

**Disclaimer: **I do not own The Fox show Bones, nor did I create these two characters or the places described here. No copyright infringement intended and no monetary profit. This is purely for testing my own creativity.

Connor

**Authors Note:** Constructive reviews are appreciated and negative criticism will be ignored.

I'm glad that people are enjoying this series. I'm not 100 percent sure where exactly I'm going with it, but I figured that it would be interesting to get an outsiders view on the B/B tango.

* * *

**Jeffersonian Ball Room  
****Washington D.C.  
****Friday night … ish. **

Angela Montenegro had a distinct revelation one day. She was an outsider looking in on one of the most complicated, but yet sweet romances of the 21st century.

Or … that's what she told herself at least.

They had been at a fund raising event for the Jeffersonian and she had been bored out of her mind. Deciding that alcohol was the medication for boredom she made her way over to the bar.

While she was there she overheard a conversation between two of the Jeffersonian scientists that worked in another division. It went a little along these lines:

"Ben! Just the guy I needed to see." Said a blond man to a dark haired gentleman seated at the bar.

"Hey, how come you're looking so down Matt?" responded his friend.

"Eh, I just made a play for one of the babes here and I got completely shot down."

"No shit. What happened?"

"Well, she was kind of standing there holding up the wall and not really talking to anyone that much. So, I went over and introduced myself. Let me tell you, it was easier talking to a brick wall; I got that much out of her. She quickly told me that she was not interested and then stopped talking to me."

"Wait, I think I know who you mean. About 5'8" or so, brunette, bright blue eyes, and a killer body in the tight black dress?"

At this point, Angela's ears perked up. There was only one female scientist here who fit that description. Brennan.

"Yeah, that's her" said Matt.

"Ha! You didn't have a chance man." Replied Ben.

"Uh … ok. Why?"

"That's Dr. Brennan of the Anthropology division. She's got the hots for the FBI liaison. As a matter of fact, he just walked in the door. Watch." And with that, Ben pointed towards the entranceway where one Special Agent Seeley Booth had arrived.

Angela followed the outstretched arm as it followed Booth's progress. Like a shark sensing blood in the water, Booth homed in on the exact location where Brennan was. He quietly made his way to where she was despondently standing facing away from the crowd. Upon arrival, he reached out and tapped her on the shoulder.

What happened next was completely unexpected from Angela's point of view.

Brennan slowly turned and faced the person tapping on her shoulder. When she finally perceived that it was Booth, who was supposed to be in Montana for a case, her face lit up like a Christmas tree.

Dropping her drink right there on the floor, Brennan literally launched herself into his arms.

This wasn't the "Hey-haven't-seen-you-in-a-while-how's-it-going" kind of hug, thought Angela. No. Not even a guy hug …

This was an "I've-missed-you-body-heart-and-soul" kind of hug. Her friend had it bad … and from the look on Booth's face as he cradled her to his chest, he had it bad too.

It occurred to Angela that she, and everyone else at the fundraiser, was intruding on a private, almost intimate moment. Scratch that … this was definitely an intimate moment. The partners had moved from a full body embrace to loosely holding each other in their arms. At that moment, Booth tenderly laid a kiss on Brennan's forehead and broke out his patented charm smile. Brennan responded to the unspoken question and they turned towards the door to leave.

"And that" said Ben "Is why you never had a chance in hell my friend"

Silently Angela agreed with their observations. Not just herself, but everyone was an external observer looking in on something that was rare and only happened once in a lifetime.


	4. Cam

**Disclaimer: **I do not own The Fox show Bones, nor did I create these two characters or the places described here. No copyright infringement intended and no monetary profit. This is purely for testing my own creativity.

Connor

**Authors Note:** Constructive reviews are appreciated and negative criticism will be ignored.

* * *

Dr. Camille Saroyan was tired.

It wasn't a particularly intensive case, but more of a sensitive one. The suspected killer was the son of a prominent import/export businessman … one who had ties to several people on Capitol Hill. Booth suspected that the man was smuggling drugs into the country, in addition to his son being a psychopathic killer.

This was the reason why she, along with the rest of the team, was burning the midnight oil at the Jeffersonian. They had to make sure the case was airtight against the son, and that all the secondary evidence could lead into a DEA investigation against the importer. If the evidence was solid, it wouldn't matter if his connections went all the way into the White House. They would nail the son of a bitch.

The computer beeped, indicating that the tox screen was done. Looking over the results, she grinned in a moment of small triumph. There, 3rd line down was the smoking gun. The chemical that she had just discovered in the victims bloodstream was the same one that had trace amounts on the suspects' sweater. Booth's search of his apartment and workplace had failed to turn up the supply.

The next place to go was through his fathers establishments. And if they found out, accidentally, that there was evidence of drugs … "Oops. What do we have here Mr. Daniels?"

She pulled the sheets off the printer, grabbed the file, and stood to make her way over to the far side of the platform where Brennan and Booth were currently ensconced in her office, going over the files of the case, looking for that one thing that will lead to a breakthrough.

She couldn't wait to tell them that she had found it and that they could all go home to get some sleep.

As she approached, she noticed a curious thing. Brennan was up at her personal coffeemaker, setting up two cups of coffee.

_That's odd_ she thought _Brennan's usually the one so deep into the files that _she _needs to be reminded to drink or eat something._

She watched as Brennan brought both cups over to Booth, who raised his head in recognition of her presence. Brennan, still standing, set her mug down on the table next to the couch and moved to hand him his.

The most curious thing happened next, according to Cam's point of view.

Booth, not breaking eye contact with Brennan, reached up with both hands and enveloped her hand with his. Not the coffee mug, mind you … but her hand. The contact stilled the movement from Brennan and their gazes seemed to indicate that all outside influences had ceased to exist.

Cam began to get a weird feeling … that she should turn around and leave them be. It felt like a private moment that she was intruding upon.

At that moment Booth chose to stand up, his hands still covering Brennan's. Cam could make out him saying the words "Thank You" to Brennan. The next thing he did was surprising, and yet not.

Still holding her hand, he leaned over and gave her a short chaste kiss on the cheek. Brennan stood stock still, but her face flushed furiously red, blushing for all she was worth.

Instead of pushing him away, or getting indignant like Cam expected her to, she closed her eyes and leaned into the kiss gently nuzzling her cheek against the rough stubble that grew on his face.

They parted with him letting go of her hand and sitting down, leaning back on the couch with one of his infamous "charm smiles" appearing. She, in turn, deposited the coffee cup in front of him and sat down, turning her attention towards the case files. Their knees were close together, touching and kinetically reassuring each other that they were there.

Cam felt that she could now make her presence known. She walked the last 30 feet or so and knocked on the door frame.

"Booth, I got it" she said.

"Got what?" he replied.

"I isolated the compound in the victims' bloodstream. It's a match for the trace we found on the suspects sweater."

Another smile lit up Booth's face and he vaulted up off the couch, grabbing the file from her. He opened it and scanned the results, seeing that they matched up.

"Awesome. I'm going to call Caroline, fax these to her, and get a warrant for the father's locations right now. Bones, meet me out by the doors in five minutes. We're going to bust both of these son's of bitches tonight."

And with that proclamation, he swept out of the office, whipping out his cell to call Caroline. Cam watched him go, her grin present for the exuberance he showed.

After he had swept out, she turned her attention towards Brennan. She caught the tail end of what could only be described as a 'loving gaze' with a small smile on her face, just before it went back into the disciplined expression she normally had.

"He certainly knows how to make an exit, doesn't he?" said Cam.

"Booth just gets overly excited when he knows we're going to close the case and bringing justice to the victims." Replied Brennan as she started to gather her things for the drive.

_I'll bet it's not the only thing he gets excited over_ thought Cam.

"You know … he never gave me a kiss like that when I was with him." She said.

Brennan froze in her tracks. She slowly turned towards Cam, her expression completely neutral.

"I don't know what you're talking about. Seeley and I are just-"

"Save it Dr. Brennan. I saw the kiss just a minute ago. He never did that for me, and he never did that for Rebecca either. And you just called him Seeley. Do you know what that means?"

"I … I don't understand"

"It means, Temperance" invoking the use of her full name, which she never did "That the boy is head over heals in love with you. And judging by your reaction, you feel the same way about him"

Instead of the complete denial that Cam expected Brennan's faced transformed into that of a woman in a little bit of denial, but a whole lot of love.

"It's … complicated" she said.

"It always is with one of the Booth boys" said Cam, with a small grin.

"I know you don't approve … but … it just sort of happened"

"Tempe, Booth is one of my best friends. If you make him happy, which I know you do, then I can't find it in my heart to disapprove of anything. Besides … you're not that bad ... just a little socially awkward." said Cam, her smile growing a little bit bigger.

And with that she turned to leave Brennan's office. But, as she got to the doorway, she turned back and said:

"Just one thing … I know I don't have to worry about this with you two, but please keep it professional at work … and for the love of God, avoid the security cameras!"

A perplexed look came over Brennan's face.

"I don't know what that means" she said.

"Never mind … just … professional, ok?"

With a small nod Brennan answered her and then turned back towards the task of gathering her things.

Cam left and made her way back towards her office. As she reached it, she turned back to see Booth meeting up with Brennan near the doors leading outside. He placed his hand in the small of her back, guiding her out towards their destination … both of them moving together as only two souls in synch could.

She thought about making a passing remark to Booth about it … but decided against it. For in the end they were all external observers looking in towards the center of their group … and they deserved to be supported by them, not castigated for that which made them work so well.

Then Cam frowned … imagining the headache that was forthcoming from her final thought on the matter.

_Angela's gonna flip when she finds out._


	5. Max

**Disclaimer: **I do not own The Fox show Bones, nor did I create these two characters or the places described here. No copyright infringement intended and no monetary profit. This is purely for testing my own creativity.

Connor

**Authors Note:** Constructive reviews are appreciated and negative criticism will be ignored.

* * *

Max Keenan was confused.

This wasn't something that happened often, seeing as how he had lived life on the run for a long time and you kind of had to be quick on your feet when you chose to live that way. But this … this had him absolutely befuddled.

Deciding to stop by his daughter's apartment after a long day of work at the Jeffersonian, he was greeted with a most unusual sight. There on her couch, with her arms wrapped around his stomach and resting her head on his chest lay Booth and Brennan.

Max knew that they were worn out after the most recent case. The effort to catch a serial killer had them both working 18 hour days non-stop, and crossing six state lines, till the sadist had been arrested. The subsequent effort had both of them suffering from major fatigue, thus being the reason that Max had stopped by tonight.

In his hand he had some takeout food and a six pack of beer. He had intended to sit and catch up with Brennan, maybe try and nudge her into opening up to himself a little bit more. After all, he was still her father and it was his responsibility to look after her … whether up close or from afar, as he had done for years.

But the sight that greeted him told him, in many ways, that someone else was taking up the responsibility of looking after her.

Booth lay with one hand underneath his pillow on the couch and the other one wrapped securely around her shoulders. He appeared dead to the world, not registering when Brennan shifted in her sleep to throw a leg over his. However, as Max watched, his grip on her tightened a little and she settled back down, light snores issuing from her once again.

Max began to get a weird feeling … that he should turn around and leave them be. It felt like a private moment that he was intruding on. And that was the core part of his confusion.

A while ago, he had approached Booth and asked if he was sleeping with his daughter. Although he vehemently denied it, Max could see that he cared for his daughter deeply. At some point between now and then it appeared that they had crossed that line. The fact that it had completely escaped Max's notice was astounding.

Moving over to the counter silently, he deposited the items on the counter and moved to go. He was stopped by the small sound of a _click_ resonating through the apartment. Max knew that sound well. It was the sound of a gun safety being put back on.

The kid had known he was there the whole entire time.

Turning back towards the couch, he was greeted with the sight of Booth cracking one eye open at him and removing his hand from underneath the pillow. A small nod in Max's direction accompanied these movements, with the whispered words following:

"Thanks Max, we haven't had a chance to eat yet." he said.

With a grin in his direction, Max waved it off, whispering back:

"Don't worry about it; I just wanted to make sure that she's taking care of herself. As long as you're here, I know she'll be fine"

And with that pronouncement, an understanding passed between the two men. Unfortunately, that small conversation had stirred Brennan from her deep slumber.

"Seeley? I'm so tired …" she said with the voice of one hovering halfway between waking and dreaming.

"Shhh, its OK Bones. Go back to sleep. Rest Baby, you've earned it." he replied, his arms coming back down to start rubbing her back in soothing motions.

"Mmmm 'K Booth. Love you" she replied.

With a tiny smile on his face, his attention completely riveted on her and her alone, he whispered three words that Max could barely make out … and he had extremely excellent hearing.

"Love you too, Bones"

Almost immediately soft snores again issued from her, her face again buried into his chest. He turned his gaze back towards Max, never really forgetting that he had been standing there the whole time.

During this, Max's thoughts drifted back to an earlier one. He was definitely intruding on a private moment. Or rather … an intimate moment.

Max put a finger up to his lips for the universal sign of 'quiet' and made a motion towards the door, backing out and taking his leave of them. His last view of them before silently closing the door behind himself was of Booth's free hand slowly traveling down the length of Brennan's unbound hair, soothing out the tangled tendrils and calming the woman who lay across him.

Another thought came unbidden to his mind. His little girl had found another protector. Oh, he would always be waiting in the wings, for she was his daughter, and he would never stop looking over her. He might even mention something along those lines to Booth one of these days, maybe even mentioning something to her friends … but he decided against it.

For in the end they were all external observers looking in the natural progression of something that was meant to be. Even he recognized that fact … although begrudgingly. For now though, they deserved some well earned rest and some time to enjoy themselves and each other. He could always play over protective daddy at another time.

With a small grin he made his way down the hallway outside her apartment with one more thought drifting through.

_Her friend Angela is going to go ballistic when she finds out. _


	6. Sweets

**Disclaimer: **I do not own The Fox show Bones, nor did I create these two characters or the places described here. No copyright infringement intended and no monetary profit. This is purely for testing my own creativity.

Connor

I do apologize for the lack of updates to my various stories.  
In the past month and a half, I've started classes for a new Archaeology program at a college and my wife & I have moved 1500 miles from our home state to attend said program.

As you can imagine, settling in and getting used to the new workload took up a majority of my time. However, I've started writing again, so updates should start happening with more frequency.

**Authors Note:** Constructive reviews are appreciated and negative criticism will be ignored.

* * *

**The Jeffersonian Institute  
****Outside the platform  
****Washington D.C. **

Dr. Lance Sweets was mad.

Ok, maybe mad was a little too intense of a word to use.

Irate. Yes … irate was a better description. He thought this as he marched through the doors leading into the medico lab and turned towards Dr. Brennan's office. In his hand he held both copies of his latest survey, which was designed to give him a more accurate assessment of how Booth & Brennan's unique partnership worked.

Instead of answers to his questions though, he found two unfilled out surveys in his inbox.

OK, unfilled wasn't completely true.

The questions on Dr. Brennan's had remained completely blank, but upon flipping the survey over he had found a complete dissertation of how to identify tuberculosis victims from desiccated remains that had been buried in the 18th century. While fascinating … and gross … to read, it clearly signified her contempt for the survey and the importance of his work.

And Agent Booth's …

He hadn't even bothered to answer any of the questions on the survey. Sweets had been puzzled by this for a short bit till he noticed something on each one of the corners of the pages.

There, on all four corners, front and back, were stick figure drawings of a woman dancing around with a fruit basket on her head and another one using a hula hoop. If you flipped the pages, one after another, the characters moved and danced.

_And he has the nerve to call _me _twelve years old. _

So, armed with righteous indignation, he drove down to the Jeffersonian to confront his "subjects" and try to get them to take him semi seriously.

However, as soon as he rounded the corner, what he saw caused him to stop short and stare.

There, kneeling on one knee in front of Dr. Brennan was Agent Booth. He had one of her hands in both of his, but Sweets couldn't quite tell what he was doing as the view was obscured. He also had that cocky grin on his face and wasn't even looking down at Brennan's hand. He was staring straight into her eyes.

Brennan, normally a compartmentalized personality, was staring straight back into his with unguarded emotion.

Sweets had always had his suspicions about the nature of their relationship, even going so far as to suggest that they used each other as surrogate boyfriend and girlfriend. And what he was seeing right now was the natural progression of his first observation.

He began to get a weird feeling at that moment … that he should turn around and leave them be, that this was a private moment.

Booth then lifted Brennan's hand out into view so he could display his handiwork. There was a band-aid wrapped around her finger and he was giving her a smile that Sweets could see her responding to.

At that point, Sweets could see Booth plainly ask a question of her to which she merely arched an eyebrow. Perceiving that as permission, Booth very delicately brought her finger up to his lips and kissed the spot that he had just finished wrapping. His eyes half closed, he could be seen to be glancing up towards Brennan, almost with a very … smoky look about them.

Brennan's eyes seemed to close as she savored the contact of his lips upon her finger. A casual observer would almost take this for flirting and maybe even a bit of foreplay. Sweets knew better though.

This went beyond a private moment. This was an intimate moment.

And as much as he hated to disturb them, he had to set this matter straight. Approaching the room with caution, almost trepidation, he took a deep breath in preparation. After all, he may be angry … but he also looked up to them. Truth be told, he had a bit of hero worship for Booth.

But before he could even get within knocking distance of their closed door, however, an arm came across his field of view and smacked him across the chest.

"Hold it Bucko" said the owner of the arm "Where do you think you're going?"

Sweets turned in the direction of the voice and came face to face with Angela Montenegro … who did not look amused.

"Uh, I'm going to see Agent Booth and Dr. Brennan?" he replied

"No, you're not. At least not right this minute anyway" She said.

"I'm not?"

"Nope"

"And … why?"

Giving him the patented look that she reserved for dealing with overeducated super geniuses who had zero social skill, she replied with:

"Booth and Brennan give up a lot for this job, and they don't get many thanks. They've managed to find some stability and intimacy in each other and they don't get many moments of those either. So, you are _not_ going to march in there and disrupt them."

"What about my survey that they completely blew off?" he said, shaking the papers in his hand.

"Yeah, we knew about that. It was a joke Sweets. Jack and I put them up to it … not that Booth needed a lot of convincing to go along with it."

"I see. What role do you play in this?" he said, motioning towards the office.

"Let me put this in geek terms so you can understand. Think of me as Gandalf confronting Balrog in the first Lord of the Rings movie. You Shall Not Pass."

"Why?"

"Honey, I've been rooting for this for a long time. And I'll be damned if someone's going to interrupt what little time they have together."

Getting a thoughtful look on his face, Sweets turned back towards the couple who were blissfully unaware of the conversation happening outside their door. Turning back to Angela he said:

"You know, it's never a good thing to confront your patients with an emotional mindset. I think I'll come back later."

Patting him on the back she said:

"You do that, kid. They'll still be here."

He half turned to walk away before stopping and turning back towards Angela.

"Ange … are they?"

"You didn't see anything Sweets."

"Right".

And with that, he turned back to head towards the lounge. The thought crossed his mind that No, he didn't really see "anything" … but everyone was seeing something. And that something was being watched by all the external observers looking in towards the center. And yes, perhaps they did deserve some time to themselves, to enjoy what moments they could.

One final thought went through his head as he made his way, absentmindedly flipping through Booth's stick figure drawings and grinning at them.

_I'm really surprised Angela didn't flip out when she found out. _

_Or did she …? _


End file.
